A married couple faces hate crime and vandalism charges after confronting a Black man and his girlfriend at a traffic light in California.
According to KTLA, the incident was captured on July 22 by Itzel Lopez, who was driving with her boyfriend after a birthday dinner. The couple noticed two people in a pickup driving behind them for a while, before the truck got in front of them at a red light and Gregory and Rachel Howell both got out of the vehicle.
The Howells, both 29, started approaching the car with Lopez and her boyfriend, who is Black, prompting Lopez to start recording.
Gregory Howell is captured on the footage yelling “white power” while making a Nazi salute, while his wife started yelling “Only white lives matter.”
“We tried to get away. She kept standing in front of the car, and wouldn’t let us leave,” Lopez told the news station.
Gregory Howell then got a shovel from his pickup and struck the car Lopez’s boyfriend was driving as they tried to escape. Rachel Howell also allegedly damaged the driver’s side mirror.
“We were just in shock. We didn’t know what was going on,” Lopez told KTLA. “Never in my life did I think I was gonna experience this. It’s actually really scary. They don’t even know you and they’re willing to hurt you.”
The Howells were ultimately arrested on Friday, after local police obtained arrest warrants.